SAP-C02 Question 134
Single answerA company runs a mission-critical application on Amazon EC2 instances in a production environment. The workload requires consistent compute capacity and must run 24/7. The company wants to optimize costs while ensuring the application remains highly available. What is the most suitable purchasing option for their EC2 instances?
- A
On-Demand Instances
- B
Spot Instances
- C
Savings Plans
- D
Reserved Instances
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: D
Explanation
Reserved Instances are the ideal choice for mission-critical workloads that require consistent compute capacity and need to run continuously. They offer a significant discount over On-Demand pricing in exchange for a commitment to a specific instance type, region, and term length (one or three years). This makes them the most cost-effective and reliable option for the described scenario.
- A. Incorrect.
On-Demand Instances are the most flexible purchasing option but are also the most expensive. While they are suitable for short-term or unpredictable workloads, they are not cost-efficient for consistent, long-term usage.
- B. Incorrect.
Spot Instances offer significant cost savings but are not suitable for mission-critical applications as they can be interrupted with little notice.
- C. Incorrect.
Savings Plans provide cost savings compared to On-Demand pricing, but they are more suitable for workloads with predictable usage patterns across multiple services. They are not tied to a specific instance type or size, making them less ideal for a single, consistent workload.
- D. Correct.
Reserved Instances are the best choice for consistent, long-term workloads that need to run 24/7. They provide significant cost savings compared to On-Demand Instances and ensure the required capacity is available.